Sunday, June 21, 2015

Mental Hurdle Overcome

Goals accomplished: Ride to Baldy. Yipee. Friends and support along the way.

Rick and Greg at the shed. Kudos to Greg on his own road to recovery.

Mark on his way back, passed me at mile marker 5 on Glendora, Ridge Road. A shout out and he turned around and paced me up the Reward Climb. The miles go much quicker when there is someone to fill in with stories.

Greg "Lemond" A. who had a hiatus from cycling for six months at GRR mile marker 7 sharing the shade with Mark and myself.

Baldy Village. The temperature was warm. 80F.

The mountain.

Roseanne supports the cycling community with bananas, oranges, and COLD water.

The story of the tortoise and the hare(s) was apropos. Eight to ten cyclists gathered at the shed for the final descent along Glendora Mountain Road. The temperature was 95F+. They left in a rush with the lure of home, air conditioning a couch after a hot ride. I took up the rear and enjoyed my own pace down the mountain. Roseanne waited for the cyclists to get a head start, then she packed her car.

The final climb up to GMR mile marker 7 done. Cross that off the list - no more climbs for the day. Then I saw the first set of riders pulled over fixing a flat near Newman's point.

Roseanne passed me about mile marker 8. A polite driver.

What caught my eye was Roseanne's parked car and four cyclists at the yellow box at the sweeping turn near the yellow box at GMR 9.2. Standing in the shade off the road, a cyclist fixed her flat tire, while another cyclist with a gaping rash on his hip and blood dripping down his knee and hand paced back and forth. I had large bandages, but the wounds were too large. Spray was requested.

Determining that everything was taken care of, I pedalled on. Stop at the first saddle enjoy the view. The heat rose as I descended. The breeze did not bring relief. The tar was still solid in the cracks. The third group of cyclists were stopped in a small sun baked patch of dirt fixing a flat tire.

This tortoise got home with tires in tact, while the rabbits were sidelined repairing tubes and bodies.
Saturday slow and steady got home first.